You Are win at Google Shopping Campaigns?

As a publicist for mass e-trade brands, I'm frequently gotten some information about my most loved piece of Q2. For me, its utilizing any additional time I need to guarantee my inquiry records are totally advanced preceding the substantial Christmas season in Q4 – I call it "Spring Cleaning

If you’re down for a little spring cleaning this season, something you could be optimizing right now are your Google Shopping Campaigns. For many retailers, the change from Product Listing Ads (PLAs) to Google Shopping Campaigns in February of 2014, provided a streamlined way to organize, bid, and report on their PLAs. However, I find that many advertisers aren’t going above and beyond to use the newest features of Google Shopping Campaigns. Whether that’s due to limited knowledge or limited know-how on the execution front, I plan to walk you through all the latest and greatest in Google Shopping Campaigns to ensure you’ll be #winning.

So, let’s talk about a few features. We’ll dive into measuring performance, opportunities lost to impression share, the bid simulator tool, enhanced cost-per-click bidding, special offers, and remarketing for Shopping Campaigns via RLSA (remarketing lists for search ads).

Measuring Performance

Assuming you’ve got conversion tracking in place, you’re probably measuring your Shopping Campaigns just like your typical search campaigns. You’re focused on your most important KPIs, including click-through rate (CTR), conversion rate, and either your CPA or ROAS. These are all your most important metrics, however, you can dig a little deeper with Shopping Campaigns by measuring how your product ads compare to those of similar products. Head over to your Shopping Campaign, click into an adgroup, navigate to your product groups, and click "Columns." From here, you can add in Benchmark CTR and Benchmark Max. CPC column. To gauge performance, you should compare your own metrics to the benchmarks to see where you stand.

Is the benchmark CTR higher than your own? Consider raising your bids, improving the product information in your Merchant Center feed, or adding negative keywords that might be bringing down your CTR. Is the benchmark max CPC higher than your own CPC? If so, and you’ve got room to push bids, go for it! After all, you want to stay competitive with other advertisers in your space.

Impression Share

Just like with your search campaigns, it’s important to keep a pulse on the impression share of your Shopping Campaigns. This can be measured at the campaign, adgroup, or product group level in AdWords. From here, you can see how much of your impression share is being lost to budget, and how much is lost to rank. If rank is low, consider raising bids or improving product descriptions in your feed via Google Merchant Center. Improved descriptions allow Google to better match your products to a search queries and in turn should boost your CTR if your ad is showing on more relevant searches.

Bid Simulator Tool

If you’ve pulled reports on the benchmarks for your product groups and have also taken a look at your impression share lost to rank, you’ve probably already got some good direction on how you should adjust your bids. If you’re still unsure, check out the Bid Simulator Tool to see how your performance would have been affected over the last seven days if your bids were different. This algorithmic tool collects and analyzes your last seven days’ worth of data, considering the quality of your ads, competitor bids, and product data to produce an estimate of what your advertising results could have been. Keep in mind that the Bid Simulator Tool will not work to predict future performance and should be used directionally. Learn more about the Bid Simulator Tool at the Google Support Center.

Enhanced CPC (ECPC) Bidding

Provided that you have conversion tracking in place, you may consider switching from manual bidding to ECPC bidding in your Shopping Campaigns. This bidding options uses conversion tracking data to predict which clicks in Google Search are more likely (or less likely) to lead to conversions. With this data, AdWords automatically adjusts your bids accordingly, pushing your current CPC up to 30 percent or lowering as much as 100 percent based on their predictions. Enhanced cost-per-click bidding can be enabled at the campaign or adgroup level and works off of bids set either at the adgroup or product level. To begin using ECPC in your Shopping Campaigns, you must first set up a Flexible Bid Strategy in AdWords to be stored in your Shared Library. More information on how to set up Flexible Bid Strategies and ECPC Bidding can be found here.

Special Offers

Now that we’ve handled the bulk of measuring and bidding, it’s time for something a bit more…special. Every advertiser knows that searchers can be easily swayed when they see a "special offer" in their search results. Of course, the goal is to sway searchers in your direction and not to competitors, so consider showcasing unique special offers in your Shopping Campaigns.

The easiest and quickest way to showcase an offer is to add it directly into your Shopping Campaign ad copy as "promotion text." However, based on the setup of your campaigns and your feed, it may not be ideal to serve one offer across all products. If you have more detailed promotions for special products or product categories, consider learning about Merchant Promotions via Google Merchant Center. They have two popular options – a "+PROMOTION" tool, which is a feed-free way to submit a few promotions at once, and a promotional feed, which is product feed with promotions directly built into it for maximum granularity. Learn more about how to get started with Merchant Promotions here.

If you use the promotion options via Merchant Center, you get this cool "Special Offer" price tag, too. Not bad.

Source: searchenginewatch.com

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How to Optimize for Keywords in 2015

In publicizing you can escape with a passing reference to your item. It's a boost. It reminds individuals that they need something. Yet mass business sector media must be all things to all individuals. You can't address each individual's issues with one 30-second spot, however don't stress – that is the thing that your site is for.

In our past endeavors as an industry to improve a site for each decisive word, we've been doing it off-base. We've been following equivalent words. We discover diverse approaches to say the same huge cash magic word and crush them into whatever substance we were going to compose. We don't discover essential words important to more than one phase of the buy cycle… and we regularly don't compose substance that is significant to any of it.

Google's Freshness calculation used to imply that you got enormous prizes for setting up "crisp substance" consistently. It didn't make a difference what that substance was – Google simply needed to see that your site was redesigned. Clearly this incentivized the SEO business in totally the wrong way: we've been more than liable of adding to "substance

Thin Content

The issue for inquiry advertisers who have been making substance for more than a couple of years is essentially that Google thought we would think that it really clear that substance must be great, notwithstanding the way that awful substance worked fine and dandy.

So a year ago Google elucidated "thin and copy content" that the Panda calculation initially focused on. It's currently "thin and copy content with practically zero included worth." 

For instance, as an industry we realized that forex exchanging was confused. We knew individuals needed to recognize what it was and how to do it. So in genuine SEO design we start composing that article with slight varieties, many times, and spreading it over the Internet. 

Clearly that doesn't work any longer. Which is incredible, in light of the fact that we just need to compose that article once. The only thing that matters is that our page that arrangements with what forex exchanging is superior to everybody else's, including Wikipedia's – and Google is providing for us more chances to upgrade our pages so as to exhibit our ability. Adding passages to Wikidata (and beforehand Freebase) can help us to show up at the highest point of list items the length of our substance is sufficiently master. Extensively talking there are an extensive number of positioning variables than can push your page up or down the rankings, yet the Knowledge Graph is an immense chance to arrive at that point without arriving at an incredible same levels of venture needed to contend in prominent query items. 

Pipe 

This is the basic truth of SEO in 2014: Googlebot comes in at the highest point of your channel. On the off chance that there's a section of your pipe missing you don't simply lose clients… you lose Google. You don't get the rankings for the decisive words at the base, just by noting individuals who are asking "where do I exchange forex?". 

Brands need to comprehend that composition exhaustive substance that answers the greater part of the inquiries their group of onlookers is scanning for could get them positioning first without building an alternate connection. 

We do see connects as a major aspect of the advertising blend, however in the event that you have enough connections to rank in the main five, you have enough connections to rank first. Individuals don't do the majority of their examination on one single site, so its essential to get specified in different distributions where your gathering of people is – that is not about connections, or watchwords – yet about noting an inquiry, or "pivotal word expectation," that maybe you can't reply all alone site. It's so beneficial getting your items evaluated by influencers, for instance. 

Upgrading for essential word goal is significantly more imperative than streamlining for catchphrases in 2015. As an illustration, if 100,000 individuals hunt down "auto protection" every month, and 1,000 individuals scan for "auto protection for excellent autos" – its a decent wagered that Google expects no less than 1,000 more individuals who have really looked for "auto protection" may be looking to guarantee a fantastic auto. The verification is there that individuals need an outcome for that term, yet its extremely hard to think about what the 100,000 individuals who are simply hunting down the most lucrative catchphrase are really searching for. 

This is the reason Google's query items will infrequently incorporate 10 administration suppliers or retailers on the first page. Searchers may need a few news – so The New York Times or The Guardian may be recorded. Individuals may need to see neighborhood suppliers on the grounds that they don't believe the huge locales – henceforth the Venice calculation. A few outcomes may be audits. Google needs to provide food for however many plans as would be prudent as it tries to fulfill searchers and give a decent experience. It bodes well for SEOs to attempt and fulfill however many distinctive searchers as could be expected under the circumstances with their own particular sites, and truth be told its totally fundamental in the event that they need to rank for enormous terms in 2015. 

The Zero Moment of Truth 

The Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT) – the choice making procedure – included a normal of 10 "assets" in 2011, as indicated by Google. Google additionally says that the quantity of assets utilized the year prior to that was a large portion of that sum. Just five. 

Cell phone possession has expanded fundamentally since 2011. The quantity of individuals joined to an informal community has multiplied. Individuals are investigating more now than they were in those days. I'd be shocked if the quantity of touch focuses before a buy at this time is under 20. Perhaps more. 

So replying however many searcher aims as could be allowed is fundamental with a specific end goal to win the ZMOT. Furthermore winning the ZMOT is fundamental so as to rank in Google. Television promoting can give that jolt… however the brand that wins the

Source : http://onepagecheckoutbest.blogspot.com/

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Google Confirms Intentions for Mobile Search – What Now?

There has been a great deal of theory as of late about Google's propose with portable inquiry. Is versatile a positioning variable? Provided that this is true, how critical would it say it is? If not, would it say it will be a positioning variable soon? Well, Google’s recent announcement on Webmaster Central answered all of these questions and confirms its intentions for mobile search.

The Announcement

In December, I said having a portable well disposed site was fundamental to a fruitful SEO system in 2015. This is presently more valid than. Google declared a week ago that it is developing versatile benevolence as a positioning sign. To stress the significance of this current, we should take a gander at a precise quote from the declaration. "Beginning April 21, we will be extending our utilization of portable benevolence as a positioning sign. This change will influence versatile inquiries in all dialects overall and will have a noteworthy effect in our list items." 

Google doesn't commonly roll out declarations with respect to calculation improvements utilizing expressions like "critical effect," and they don't regularly give a definite date to when a calculation change will happen. In this way, why did they do it this time, and what does it mean?

Go Mobile or Become Irrelevant

Google is giving a course of events to support the individuals who haven't officially adjusted their sites to versatile to start making this move. This implies that you ought to progress in the direction of having a portable agreeable site by April 21 in light of the fact that it is clear that Google plans to compensate versatile cordial sites with better rankings in versatile pursuit. Similarly, sites that are not portable inviting may extremely well experience an emotional decrease in versatile rankings.

Indeed preceding this declaration, Google's expectations have been really clear, as it has made an in number push as of late to urge site holders to make their properties portable inviting. For instance, Google included "portable agreeable" names to the versatile list items, sent site managers portable ease of use cautioning warnings through Google Webmaster Tools (GWT), propelled a versatile neighborly testing device, and included a portable convenience report in GWT.

What’s Next?

Up to now, having a portable well disposed site has been a game changer. Notwithstanding, with this declaration, I anticipate versatile amicable sites will rapidly turn into the standard as associations attempt to stay significant in portable pursuit. The upper hand will then be given to the individuals who give guests the best portable experience.

It is additionally conceivable that responsive sites will be given inclination in Google Search over committed versatile locales. Google has since a long time ago touted responsive outline as its favored portable arrangement, in light of the fact that it accepts responsive configuration gives a superior client experience and in light of the fact that its less inclined to mistakes than devoted versatile destinations. You can see an incredible illustration of this in a late article by Emily Alford, a journalist at ClickS and SEW, where she and I talked about the issues AutoTrader is as of now confronting in Google Search on the grounds that they depend on partitioned desktop and committed versatile locales, as opposed to a solitary responsive site.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this announcement eliminates any doubts regarding the beneficial treatment mobile-friendly websites will receive in the way of better rankings moving forward. If you don’t yet have a mobile-friendly website, it’s time to get to work.

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Official: Google AdWords Rolls Out “Upgraded URLs” For Tracking Parameters

Ads (usually) will no longer be re-set and sent back to editorial review when tracking criteria change. 

Today, Google announced the release of what are dubbed “upgraded URLs” for AdWords advertisers that use tracking parameters. Upgraded URLs have been in beta for API users for months and are now rolling out globally to all users in the web interface this week. With this change, the landing page URL and the tracking parameters that make up the destination URL will be treated separately.
The separation means that making changes to your tracking won’t necessarily send your ads back into editorial review and ad history and stats remain with the ads (see caveat below).

You can scale tracking parameters across various levels of your accounts and set up new custom tracking parameters.

Note that if you are using auto-tagging in Google AdWords, this change won’t affect your accounts or the way your destination URLs are handled or the data that gets passed to Google Analytics. That said, you might want to consider using ValueTrack and custom parameters (more on these below) to gain more information about your ad performance. Additionally, at some point this year, the Destination URL option will be retired, so you might as well start using the Final URL option described below.

Two New Components: Final URL + URL Options
Instead of setting the Destination URL, you’ll define the landing page in the new “Final URL” field. This is the actual landing page that the user sees after clicking on an ad. The final URL can include redirects within your domain (redirecting to a third-party domain is still a no-no) and tracking parameters.

The URL Options section is where you’ll find the ability to scale your tracking changes with the new tracking template and custom parameter fields. The benefit here is that you can manage the tracking parameters separately across various levels of your account without having to reset your ad performance stats.

Tracking Template Parameters and Custom Parameters

The tracking template tells AdWords how to assemble your URLs and allows you to scale tracking parameter updates across multiple URLs.

This is where you’ll use ValueTrack parameters such as {lpurl} or {unescapedpurl} and couple them with other tracking parameters to create the actual URL associated with an ad. Here’s an example:

You’ll find the full set of ValueTrack options here.

The new custom parameters let you create your own tracking criteria and set specific values for them. For example, you might set a custom parameter called {_season} and assign a value of “back to school” or a {_promocode} custom parameter with an assigned value of “50OFF15″.

You can set up to three custom parameters in the URLs options section, however, custom parameters are not available at the account level.

The Ad-Level Caveat

Tracking templates are available all levels: account, campaign, ad group, ad keyword, auto target and sitelink. However, Google notes that “any changes at the ad level will remove the existing ad and re-submit a new one for review”.

For that reason, Google recommends setting up tracking templates and custom parameters at higher-level entities when possible to keep new ads from being created as well as minimize the number of tracking updates you need manage. The lowest level tracking settings will override those set at higher levels.

To learn how to set up Upgraded URLs, see the AdWords help page here.

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How to Create Compelling Content for SEO Success and Sales.

The advice you give your clients is spot on - focus on creating high-quality content and earning editorial links. But the truth is, creating compelling content that stands out takes time and resources. While the investment is definitely worth it for long-term success, how can you ensure you’re getting a good return on that investment?

Whether you’re in-house or with an agency, the pressure is on to prove results to clients. Early wins can go a long way toward building your authority and giving you more leeway to broaden your strategies and possibly even experiment a little. How do you show value sooner in an engagement when we know that focusing on an editorial strategy to earn high-value links can take several weeks to yield the desired results?

The answer is to create content that can help increase leads at the same time as it earns links, paving the way for future success. Here’s some inspiration to get you started.

1. Try Telling a Story.

Storytelling is the new sexy word in content marketing today and rightfully so. No matter how old we are, simple stories have the power to draw in the reader and hold their interest. Public relations specialists have been doing this well for decades, enchanting their target audience by weaving compelling backstories.

Take a simple Indian cookbook for example. A common topic, especially in the U.K. where the book is published and Indian food is very popular. How do you make it stand out and grab attention? The press promotions are extremely clever. Take this coverage in the Guardian, where the story revolves around the author’s mission to understand the history and heritage of her family across three continents and how they dealt with being exiled from Uganda.

Storytelling is the new sexy word in content marketing today and rightfully so. No matter how old we are, simple stories have the power to draw in the reader and hold their interest. Public relations specialists have been doing this well for decades, enchanting their target audience by weaving compelling backstories.

Take a simple Indian cookbook for example. A common topic, especially in the U.K. where the book is published and Indian food is very popular. How do you make it stand out and grab attention? The press promotions are extremely clever. Take this coverage in the Guardian, where the story revolves around the author’s mission to understand the history and heritage of her family across three continents and how they dealt with being exiled from Uganda.

The author shares the story about her grandparents, why they moved from India to Africa and then were forced to leave and head for the U.K. and how she is piecing this history together via food. She’s not just a cookbook author, she’s reclaiming her past, and you can share a piece of it, too. A compelling story makes the recipes that much more relatable and appealing.

TOMS is another company that does this exceptionally well. Not only do they have a stories section on their site, each story is well optimized to stand out on its own and earn shares and links.

These stories work to strike and cord and make an emotional connection with the reader, building that powerful and intangible goodwill for the brand. We’re not just buying shoes; we’re helping people like Farishta. From reading some of their stories, you’re more likely to consciously seek out TOMS shoes and want to buy a pair…and also share the stories with your network.

Apply it: Dig into your company’s mission to understand the big picture and the emotional story behind its raison d’être. Also look at what your target audience is passionate about, what would resonate with them and move them to want to share or link to you? Therein lie the stories that you need to infuse into your content efforts.

2. Show Them How their Dreams Are Possible via Powerful Testimonials

Your product or service is clearly fulfilling a need for your customers. What problem of theirs are you able to solve? Helping them visualize that final outcome is a very powerful tool and sales professionals have been using this tactic to help close deals. For SEO, we can also harness this tactic by making these testimonials share-worthy and interesting, to create compelling content.

The weight loss industry does this really well. Take celebrity fitness trainer Tracy Anderson who has trained clients such as Gwyneth Paltrow and Cameron Diaz. She’s also worked with Jennifer Lopez and by sharing a few of the same exercises she does with JLo she earned herself of a ton of links back to her site from the likes of InStyle and PopSugar.com as well as thousands of views of her videos on YouTube.

She’s sharing the dream of how people can look like Jennifer Lopez and also giving them access into the personal details of a celeb’s custom workout. The underlying message being, if the results are so good, then she must know what she is doing and the chances of sales resulting from this will also be higher.

Neil Patel is someone else who does a fantastic job with his case studies as a lead gen tool. The way he writes and presents them on his site also make them very share-worthy and powerful pieces of content on their own.

Within his niche market, these pieces of content are fascinating reads, helping to educate and share his tips with visitors to his site. As a sales tool, they are genius, too.

Apply it: Look at the problems you have solved and understand the end-goals of your customer. Can you put together compelling stories that are beautifully presented and also serve to educate and help your target audience? Find ways to show them just how you can make achieving their dreams possible, while also sharing the how behind the what, to help make the content interesting and share-worthy.

3. Find the Related Angles

When people purchase a product or service, there are additional reasons tied to their main purchase motivation. Finding those and then creating content around that will not only help endear you to your customer base but also help promote thought leadership in your industry.

For example, Williams-Sonoma doesn’t just sell cookware and gourmet foods. They know how much their audience loves to cook and work to inspire them through content such as seasonal recipes and cooking guides, interviews with renowned chefs, and entertaining tips.

It’s beautifully crafted content, in direct relation to the interests of their customer and works well to earn strong links back to their site - while also subtly promoting their products.

Other companies that do this well are pet food brands such as Pedigree and Hill’s. They understand how much their audience love pets and serve up related content designed around how people can better care for their pets as well as help other animals in need.

Content like this strengthens the brand, increases retention and sales and also leads to editorial links earned naturally.

Apply it: Dig into the different audience personas to find strong interests and see where they intersect with closely related topics around your product or service. Create this content and present it beautifully on your site, to provide you with a strong foundation that will help earn you links and leads.

Have additional ideas or ways you’ve created content that has helped earn you more leads? Please do share them in the comments below.

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Windows 10's new features: Cortana, a 'Spartan' browser, Xbox streaming, and more

Microsoft showed off new, consumer-focused features for Windows 10

It’s official, folks: Windows 10 is coming to the people. After kicking off Windows 10 with a bevy of business-friendly features, Microsoft drew back the curtain on the operating system’s new consumer-focused features at an event on Wednesday, while simultaneously driving home a vision of an operating system designed to deliver a singular, cohesive experience across a myriad of device types

And it'll be a free upgrade for Windows 7 and 8 users, who can snag the operating system for nada in the first year after Windows 10 hits the streets.

After Microsoft operating system chief Terry Myerson announced that crucial tidbit, Microsoft’s Joe Belfiore took the stage to run through some features coming to Windows 10 Preview that are designed to make using the operating system a smoother experience.

First, Belfiore showed off some helpful tweaks to Windows 10 features that have already been announced: The Start menu will be able to expand to fill the full screen if you desire, for one thing. The Action Center (read: Windows 10’s notification center) is receiving improved functionality, such as Windows Phone 8.1-esque quick action buttons that let you activate features (such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi) with a single click. Notifications in the Action Center will be able to be expanded.

More helpfully for everyday workflow, Windows 10 will condense the Control Panel and the modern UI PC Settings into a single interface, eliminating Windows 8’s maddening insistence on dumping crucial system tools into two separate locations. 

Microsoft also announced that its Continuum feature, which dynamically shifts the Windows 10 interface from the Modern UI to the desktop depending on whether you’re using a traditional PC or a touchscreen device, will soon appear in Windows 10 Preview builds.

Cortana comes to PCs

As anticipated, Microsoft’s Cortana digital assistant will make the jump from Windows Phone to Windows 10, assuming control of many of the operating system’s search features. Cortana, which will get her own place next to the Start button in the desktop taskbar, can perform many of the same basic tricks she does in Windows Phone. Cortana can be interacted with via text or natural voice queries, just like on mobile devices.

Still based off Microsoft’s cloud-based Bing brains, Cortana can answer basic queries like “Will I need a coat tomorrow?” or how much it costs to attend the University of Washington, as Belfiore showed in live demonstrations. But Cortana’s also been tweaked for more useful PC-like interactions. She can scour your local machine, OneDrive account, and even your business network to find files based on natural language queries. Belfiore showed off the capabilities by asking Cortana to “Find PowerPoint slides about the charity auction” and “Show me photos from December.” The digital assistant surfaced the desired information nearly instantly.

That sounds pretty darn handy, and there are more playful commands, too: Telling Cortana to “Play my music” launches the music app, while asking her to “Please be quiet” silences the music. Nice!

Windows 10 for phones and universal apps

Belfiore then veered off to show Windows 10 on phones and tablets, including a brief demo of mobile, touch-friendly Office apps. Windows 10 for phones will basically act like an extension of your PC, featuring universal Windows apps that share the same central heart and design as their PC counterparts, as well as newly universal notifications that synchronize across Windows 10 devices.

Windows 10 phones and small-screen tablets will include a free copy of Office. For a quick look at the universal Office apps, be sure to check out our article on Windows 10 for phones and tablets.

After the mobile talk, Belfiore showcased a rebuilt version of Outlook designed for PCs, tablets, and phones alike as a universal Windows app. Strongly resembling the Mail app in Windows 8—at least aesthetically—the universal Outlook map will sport a unified look across device types, packing touch-friendly commands such as swiping left on a message to remove it, or swiping right to flag it for later follow up.

Since many of Microsoft’s apps—including Outlook—have their heads in the cloud, changes you make to a universal app on one device will be immediately reflected on other devices, as Belfiore demoed by actively editing Calendar app entries simultaneously on a PC and a phone.

Microsoft’s bringing the same cloud-centric, universal app experiences to its core Windows apps as well, all powered by OneDrive on the backend. The Photos app will create albums from all your devices, intelligently removing duplicates and burst photos. A revamped universal People app will collate your contacts, while the Music app is also receiving a universal overhaul. As rumored, Microsoft will add support for you to put your music collection in OneDrive within the next month or two, so you can listen to your tunes anywhere. Maps will also be receiving Cortana integration, and she'll be able to remember where you parked your car.

This is Spartan

Also new to Windows 10 is Spartan: A new, clean-looking, lightweight browser built around a new rendering engine. It won’t be available in the first Windows Insider builds, and it will only come to phones eventually, Belfiore said.

The Spartan browser includes a note-taking mode that lets you annotate a webpage, then share your marked-up, commented-on version with others using Windows 10’s native Share feature. There’s also a clipping tool so you can save portions of websites directly to OneNote.

Spartan also doubles down on the mere act of reading on the Internet. The browser integrates an updated version of the stellar Reading Mode found in Windows 8’s Metro Internet Explorer app. Reading Mode strips all the ads and sidebar crud out of webpages, formatting articles so that they appear similar to a book. It’s a wonderful thing. Spartan also taps into the Windows Reading List app, so you can save articles to read later, synchronizing the list across multiple devices. Unlike the Reading List app in Windows 8, the one in Windows 10 will let you save content to read offline.

Cortana is also being integrated directly into Spartan. "Because she knows you, she can help in more nuanced ways,” Belfiore said, showing an example where searching for “Delta” in his address bar popped up information for the Delta flight Belfiore was scheduled to take later. Cortana will also pop up when you visit a restaurant’s website, surfacing directions as well as information about the restaurant’s menu, hours of operating, and Yelp reviews.

Improving PC games with Xbox

Microsoft’s also bolstering Windows 10’s gaming chops by deeply integrating Xbox capabilities into the operating system. A new Xbox app essentially looks like a more fully fleshed-out version of SmartGlass, letting you chat with your Xbox Live pals, view your achievement information, or access game DVR clips. The app also lets you like, share, and comment on game clips.

But Windows 10’s new gaming chops is about more than merely expanding Xbox’s footprint. While you’re playing traditional PC games, be it in Steam or otherwise, a new Windows key + G keyboard shortcut brings up an interface for saving snapshots and 30 second video clips of your adventures, which then brings you into the Xbox app to share it. Games don’t directly have to support the functionality as it’s being overlaid directly by Microsoft in Windows 10.

As previously announced, the performance-enhancing DirectX 12 gaming API is also coming to Windows 10. Xbox head Phil Spencer claims that the API can deliver up to a 50 percent performance improvement in games.

Microsoft also wants to enable more gaming experiences regardless of the device you’re using. Fable Legends players on Windows 10 and Xbox One will be able to play with each other, and you’ll be able to stream your Xbox One games directly to any Windows 10 device, though it sounds like it will be limited to local networks only, similarly to Steam in-home streaming.

Surface hub and Windows Holographic

This has nothing to do with Windows, but it's a major—and unexpected—hardware announcement from Microsoft: The company's rolling out the Surface Hub, an 84-inch, 4K, touch-enabled display for office collaboration. You can read the full details here.

And the Surface Hub isn't even the craziest hardware announced by Microsoft today. That honor goes to Windows Holographic, a set of technologies—a headset, new Windows 10 technology, and a HoloStudio dev app—that brings some insanely intense augmented reality capabilities to Windows. You'll definitely want to check this out.

When can you get it?

Myerson also revealed some stats from the Windows 10 Technical Preview. Thus far, more than 1.7 million people have registered for the Windows Insider program, and they’ve installed Windows 10 on more than 3 million different PCs.

A fresh Windows 10 Preview build containing the newly announced features will hit PCs next week, with a Windows 10 build for phones becoming available after the Super Bowl. Here's how to get started with the Windows 10 Preview.

This story, "Windows 10's new features: Cortana, a 'Spartan' browser, Xbox streaming, and more" was originally published by PCWorld.

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5 trends shaping computers in 2015

In 2014, we have seen lots of new computer technology trends that are shaping more clearly. From cheap computers, Chromebooks to the new operating system, biometric security technology ...

Here are the technological innovations expected to alter the perspective of the computer industry this year.

Computer - thinner, lighter with Intell Broadwell microprocessor

Haswell - 4th microprocessor generation was focus on solving the problem electric consumption and this topic continues to promoted on Core M chips (also called Broadwell-Y). Not only saving less electricity, Core M aslo enables laptop manufacturers to develop models not use fanless, ultra-thin and lightweight design.

One of such models is Samsung Ativ Book 9 Ultrabook has been introduced at CES 2015. Because of doing not use fanless, Ativ Book 9 has a thickness about 10.2 mm and the duration of battery save up to 10 hours at medium brightness.

Windows 10 will completely replace windows 8.

Windows 10 is the operating system that is waiting for in 2015. Based on the shortcomings in Windows 8, Microsoft has quickly developed Windows 10 to "correct" and equipped the best features that the company had. With the release a Technical Preview version in 2014, Microsoft has listened to users. From the feedback in Insider Program program, the company will improve and complement the features that users want to be on the official version at the end of this year.

However, unclearly, how will Microsoft release Windows 10? Users have to purchase copyright or use as Office 365? Microsoft will organize a conference on January 21, promising to reveal more features of Windows 10. With the popularity of Android tablets, smartphone and Chromebook in recent years, Windows 10 is facing to pressure to revive the computer market.

4K screen is more popular, so gamers also have benefit.

At the end of 2014, the price of 4K screen fell down and expected to continue fall down in 2015.

In 2015, HDMI 2.0 will become more popular and 4K screen will have fresh rate of 60 Hz. Besides, multi-screen trend is expected to break out in this year. With the improvements in both hardware and software, multi-screen users, especially gamers will get a better visual experience.

Chromebook and cheap computers become more attractive

The laptops which use Google's Chrome OS will not yet be a threat to the traditional laptop, because it's platform depends on the internet and functional restriction. However, Chromebook has been expanded gradually the market, especially education and enterprise market.

Biometric sensor and expanded utilities in computers

Biometric technology will be change the way that you login to the computer and make online payment activities. If on smartphones, biometric sensor (fingerprint security) has become a trend when manufactures (such as Apple, LG, Samsung, HTC) put it into their product, the computers also must not be an exception.

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